Choo Chee Pla (Fish in Thick Red Curry Sauce)

Wow, I've been away for a long time again and for that I can only apologise. Those of you who saw my last post will know I'd been rather ill, had lost my appetite and wasn't really cooking, hence putting up a post from before I got the lurgy. You'll hopefully be pleased to know that the 2nd round of antibiotics have done their job and I'm now hungry and have most definitely taken over the running of the kitchen again!!

Choo Chee Pla is a dish that has been on my to do list for quite a long time now, there are certainly some similarities with Penang curry - they're both thick, creamy coconut based dishes, predominantly sweet and mild in heat. The main difference is choo chee uses a red curry paste rather than massaman and is always a fish/seafood based one. For convenience and presentation, I've chosen to use fish fillets but whole fish can also be used. For texture (and mostly indulgence) I've chosen to lightly batter and deep fry the fish; not an essential for choo chee; but very nice!

I like to eat this with lots of fresh sweet basil leaves, white rice and something tangy like a som tam salad to cut through the richness.

For two people use:

• 2 large fish fillets cut in half (I've used basa/river cobbler- yes I know it has poor credentials but it's robust and holds up well when deep frying)
• a large handful of plain flour
• 400ml of good coconut milk eg Chakoh or Aroy-D
• a level tablespoon of red curry paste (Mae Ploy is what I always use)
• a large splash of fish sauce
• a large pinch of palm or light brown sugar
• 5 or 6 kaffir lime leaves, rolled and shredded finely
• optionals to serve- sliced large red chilli & Thai sweet basil leaves 
• vegetable oil for deep frying

Heat the oil for deep frying to around 180 degrees celcius. Pat the fish pieces dry with kitchen paper and dust in the plain flour before placing gently in the oil, fry until a light golden brown and crisp (around 5-8 minutes depending on the size). I did mine in two batches so as not to overcrowd the fryer.

While the fish fries, make the sauce. Heat a dry wok and when hot, add in the coconut milk. Allow the milk to bubble away, reduce and the oils to start making their way out- this should take about four to five minutes. Stir gently to help it along.

Next pop in the red curry paste and mix well for several minutes until fully blended and the red oils start to float to the top of the sauce. Add in the fish sauce and sugar, stir well.

Drain the fried fish on kitchen paper before putting on your serving plate, pour over the sauce, sprinkle over the lime leaves and serve up with chillies and sweet basil. Don't leave it hanging around too long so the fish stays crisp.